I'm considering the purchase of a chronograph and I need some advice from you fellows.
My requirements:
1. accuracy is a must (within reason - a few years ago I saw 2 chrony's set up inline and there was 100 FPS difference between them for the same shot and the highest readings were from the 2nd one in line.)
2. easy to setup is a plus
3. cost isn't a major factor but is a consideration
4. reliability is a must
5. a good warranty is a plus
6. being able to read the data at the benchrest or print it out at home is desirable.

For the "good" ones, consider that anything that gets set down range will evntually get shot. More expensive units that just risk the sky screens rather than the actual machine are proably a better long term investment. Take a look at the Oehler's .

I have an Oehler 35P. I bought it when they frst came out. It is reasonably reliable and it is accurate. It does not like dust or rain. Living in West Texas I must clean the printer frequently. Stuffing it in a bread sack helps but is not the end-all...

Until recently I would have said Oehler without a reservation...

We just got a new edition of the RCBS Load program. This program interfaces with my fathers Chrony Beta Master. He can down load direct to his pc and graph his loads using the RCBS Load program! This is HOT!

I must enter everything into a spread and fool around with graphs to get LESS!

My opinion is to get a Chrony Beta Master and the RCBS Load program. I may sell my Oehler and move into the comfort zone!

Got a Chrony a while back, very handy, all you need is a camera tripod and you're in business.

I write down the velocities at the range, as my unit won't store them anyway.

Mike,
Found this cheap telescoping leg tripod for camera use...marked Susus 2. Five 9" sectrions of telescoping rod, each with a little locking detent...all closed up, it runs 11" OAL. The whole thing, Chrony, tripod, and all the gear fits into a military shaving kit-bag.

I bought a plain F-1 Chrony a dozen years ago. I've shot enough different guns & loads over it to trust it. Things average out. Some loads are faster than book and some are slower. That applies to guns too. Reserve a brick of .22 LR for testing. That will tell you if you've got a bad setup before you start popping Noslers.

Used to have a couple of Chrony's - now have a Pact PC2 and an Oehler 35P.

The Chrony, with a 1' spread between sensors was the easiest to set up. It was very susceptible to sunlight and extraneous muzzleblasts nearby.

The Pact PC2 has a 2' spread between sensors and is a little harder to set up than the chrony. Has a nice, wide field for shooting and has the control box at the bench. Mine has a printer that's a little hard to get set up to use (utilizes an infra-red beam that has to be set very exacting), but is less sensitive to sun and adjacent muzzleblasts.

The Oehler 35P has three screens set 2' apart and requires at least two tripods to stabilize properly and takes the longest to set up. The control unit and printer are integral and on the bench. Sunlight or other noises don't affect it to the extent of the other two. I believe the 3 sensors to give the best of all readouts.

Thanks,Guys!
I figured the Oehler was the top-shelf one.
I'm a little surprised at the amount of Chrony's in use but I understand they've improved their quality a great deal over the last 5-6 years.
I assume that it's important that the unit/screens be parallel,in all planes, to the line-of-bore or the reading will be low.Do any of these units provide templats for both front and rear screens that you can check from the bench to assure they are super-imposed exactly?
I guess you can use a .22 long rifle as a reference standard for the lower velocities to see if it's "in the ballpark".
Do you also keep a reference batch of loads to check the high end (like the 3000 FPS level)?

Got a Master F-1 a few years back and love it. Easy to set up and it provides very repeatable results. (I have had one 5 shot string with 4fps Extreme Spread, and several under 10fps E.S.)

One thing I like about the Master is the remote display. The display sits next to me on the bench, so reading it is easy, and it has an on/off switch for re-setting the unit if needed.

Other than that its a pretty basic unit, but I write all my data down on paper (often with POI data) and enter it into a spreadsheet when I get home. Then I let the spreadsheet do the calcs for Average, Extreme Spread, Standard Deviation, etc.

I was a spread sheet guy too. This newest version of the RCBS Load program has totaly changed that thinking for me. The ability to directly download my chronograph information into my PC and throw the loads up on the graph with out a lot of work has changed my thinking. This is "comfort."

I'll add my two cents worth about my Shooters Chrony.
It was fine until I extended the strings from ten to twelve shots. Twelve-shot strings makes more sense when chronographing six-shooters and even my old Carcano uses six-shot clips. With my Mauser, I shoot three-shot groups then let the barrel rest and cool.
After changing the string-length setting, it no longer stores the strings properly in NVRAM, forcing me to record my data on paper at the range before shutting it off. And yes I know that it doesn't save the string to NVRAM until I go to the next string. Mostly, it scrambles multiple strings. Some times this is annoying or amusing, such as when it scrambled data from my .45 Colt with data from my .270
Other times, it has scrambled two strings from my .270 that I wanted to compare. This forced me to shoot it over.

Manyplews, I have the CED millenium and love it. Very easy to read large sky screens and supposedly more accurate than the other modles like ohler. Its very easy to set up and use and comes with some softwear to down load your loads.

Its a great setup and if interested check them out they are great and will answer any and all questions if you just call them..